Piano stores closing as instrument sales plummet

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Between 30,000 and 40,000 pianos are now sold every year in the United States. That might sound like a lot given that each new instrument runs thousands of dollars, but it actually represents the bottom (for now) of a long-term decline for the past century-plus. 364,500 pianos were sold in 1909, when the country's population was much smaller: that was one new piano for every 248 Americans, whereas the current ratio is approximately one new piano for every 9,000 Americans.

The reasons for this decline are many, but piano retailers interviewed for a recent Associated Press report say that fewer and fewer kids are learning to play. "Computer technology has just changed everything about what kids are interested in," says one retailer. "People are interested in things that don't take much effort, so the idea of sitting and playing an hour a day to learn piano is not what kids want to do."

Of course, playing piano is just one side of the equation: the other is listening. 1909 was before the radio era, let alone TV and the Internet, so an evening of family entertainment was much more likely to involve live music than it does today. The electronic revolution has also led to the invention of a wide range of electronic keyboards that are more affordable and flexible than full-size acoustic instruments — so fewer pianos doesn't necessarily mean fewer pianists.

Still, the Associated Press report is getting a lot of attention from people who hope that, as America's pastimes change, live music will continue to be heard in the home — and school. Classical MPR has recently joined an initiative founded to raise awareness about the importance of music education; if the decline in piano sales troubles you and you'd like to ensure that future generations continue to have the opportunity to learn how to play musical instruments, visit the site for Music Makes Us Whole.